Having a refined set of psychological skills is an important factor in the ability to remain flexible and adaptable to a variety of situations, both in a professional capacity and in everyday life. With that in mind, today the forex experts over at Learn to Trade are sharing 3 ways you can look to develop and strengthen this skill set in your spare time, demonstrating how an active and evolving mental toolkit can help you become a better-rounded, more successful person capable of tackling any and every challenge that may come your way.
Get into fitness
Of course, becoming active boasts a whole variety of physical benefits, but what is often understated is the mental perks that come with embracing a physical lifestyle.
It’s recommended that, in order to remain motivated in adopting an active lifestyle, you find an activity that you enjoy – after all, if you spend all day dreading that evening gym session, eventually you’re going to give in. Luckily, whether you prefer an individual activity such as running or a team sport like 5-a-side football, you’re sure to be developing a set of psychological skills with each and every option.
For example, regularly partaking in team sports will see you putting your team skills into practice – that, in turn, will help you to develop your cohesion and communication skills. By regularly exposing yourself to situations where you’re required to be on the same wavelength as others working towards a united goal, you’ll strengthen your ability to understand others and compromise – a skill particularly valued in a professional environment.
In contrast, if you’re more of a solo player, you’ll be able to positively evolve your self-discipline and motivation skills. Whether it’s challenging yourself towards a goal weight or a faster time, when the only person you’re competing against is yourself, you’ll develop a stricter sense of restraint, persistence and determination – psychological skills that can be utilised in a vast range of everyday situations.
Participate in volunteer schemes
Participating in volunteer schemes is, of course, more about what you can do for others than what it can do for you. This isn’t to say that you can’t utilise this experience for your own gains, however.
Whether it’s helping down at a local food bank or offering your assistance at a charity shop for just a few hours each week, exposing yourself to different perspectives and interacting with groups of people outside of your usual social circles will help you craft a better sense of comprehension surrounding different outlooks and experiences – a useful mental capability that will enable you to be more understanding in team scenarios and more confident in unfamiliar environments.
Trade on the forex market
As a 24/5 market that sees a mammoth $5 trillion traded each and every day, the forex market is the world’s most liquid trading market. With high levels of volatility as a result of constant trading in considerable volumes, partaking in live forex signals can be a very high-pressure experience – making it the perfect activity to strengthen key psychological skills.
As currency valuations are dictated by a variety of external factors, values of currency pairs (or in layman’s terms, ‘forex stock’) can sometimes change quickly and unexpectedly. As such, forex traders have to practice a great sense of composure and analysis in the face of stressful scenarios – a highly useful and transferable mental skill that can be practiced across all personal and professional experiences.
Easily accessible through all digital platforms, forex can be traded from anywhere at anytime, making this potential lucrative practice a highly convenient way of strengthening your psychological abilities. Of course, with the potential of big wins comes the potential of great losses, so be sure to spend time utilising demo trading accounts before risking any actual capital. This will still enable you to put your mental toolkit into action, but removes any sense of risk in the process. Only once you feel confident in your knowledge of market operations should you then look to trade in a live market environment – after all, you might as well try to make some money while strengthening your psychological skill set!
Having a refined set of psychological skills can come in handy more than you may originally perceive. As such, look to put them into practice wherever possible in order to strengthen your arsenal appropriately – as this article proves, it’s easier than you may think!
Author bio:
John James is a content writer for Learn To Trade, the foreign exchange education and learning specialists – offering a range of training courses to help people understand the currency trading market, as well as its opportunities and risks.
A professional writer with over a decade of incessant writing skills. Her topics of interest and expertise range from health, nutrition and psychology.